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Last night, I was fortunate enough to score passes to a free screening of ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ in IMAX! Nothing makes me happier than saving $16 and seeing a heavily anticipated movie for FREE. I don’t think I’m the right person to accurately review this film because I’m not a huge comic person, nor am I a die hard Batman fan. Alas, I will try and do it my own way.

We all know that Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy is much grittier, realistic, and serious than the Batman movies of the past, which were more camp and at times, so bad they were hilarious and Nolan’s style isn’t for everyone. There are people out there who wish these films didn’t take themselves so seriously. Thankfully, much like its predecessor, ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ does provide a few moments of comedy — maybe not intentionally. If you were around the Internet in the summer of 2008 when TDK came out and were aware of the numerous memes and gifs that popped up as a result of the Bale drama and sheer greatness of the movie, this post is for you.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!!!!!!!

I’m not kidding!

5. That moment when Talia/Miranda suddenly stops talking and closes her eyes and DIES. I love Marion Cotillard and think she’s a great actress, but that was so Drama 101. You know when you’re a little kid and you and your friends play cops and robbers or some other version of an imaginary game in which you get killed? And you and/or your friends always suddenly stop moving/talking to close your eyes and dramatically die? It was exactly like that.

4. The extras in the football field scene doing too much. I’m sure getting to be an extra in TDKR is very, very exciting. And to top it off by being in a crucial scene with Tom Hardy’s Bane describing his plan for Gotham? Terribly exciting. However, I couldn’t help but notice a few extras who were lucky enough to be the focus of their own shots and display “fear” and “confusion.” I’m not going to criticize any of their acting abilities because it’s not like they’re paid millions to be in this film and most are probably die hard fans who are just happy to take part, but I will admit it was a bit distracting. Some of the expressions I saw made it hard for me to take the scene seriously because I couldn’t help but laugh.

3. Quinn from Dexter playing Quinn from Dexter. During one crucial moment of the film, JGL’s character, Blake attempts to save a school bus filled with orphan boys by negotiating with the cops blocking a bridge leading out of the city. The cop refuses to let any of them cross for fear of the bomb going off. Blake tries to explain that the “orders have changed” and that they had to let people escape. To be honest, I was having trouble paying attention to this scene because “HOLY CRAP THAT’S THE GUY FROM DEXTER!” Quinn has never been one of my favorite characters from the show, and it was hilarious to see him in this film because he was essentially the same character: stubborn, dim-witted, and unwilling to listen. I’m sure surprise!motherfucker Doakes would’ve let them cross.

2. That scene where Alfred explains he burnt Rachel’s letter and Bruce Wayne looks like Kermit (Bale). I don’t even know why this moment made me laugh so hard. I think it was a combination of me looking for things to laugh at and Christian Bale’s expressions. The dialogue was kind of overdramatic (“How dare you….” will always make laugh now) and Bale’s face was looked a lot like Kermit’s for a few minutes. I look forward to the gifs of this scene.

1. “Bururlkjkdfjkgjk” “Thsekljlkmkvejek” or how I could not understand a word Bane said. A few months ago, WB released a scene and the first look at Tom Hardy’s Bane to a few fans. One of the main complaints was how difficult it was to understand Bane because of the mask. As a result, WB and Nolan issued a statement saying they were going to fix Bane’s voice and make it more intelligible. I do think they did make an effort to make his voice clearer, but there were chunks of the movie where I sat their going, “What?! What is he saying?” I’m not sure who is to blame for this, perhaps sound mixing, but I do hope nobody at WB seriously thought Bane’s dialogue was understandable. Sometimes it was a bit high pitched, which worked because I could actually understandable, and sometimes it sounded like rocks rolling in a bag. And couple that voice with Batman’s notorious growl, you get scenes that resembled this:

Overall, I really enjoyed TDKR and I think most people will too. I’ve read a few reviews where people have expressed disappointment and I think that’s to be expected. The Batman franchise is so beloved that there will always be people who won’t be pleased, and TDK was such a huge film, both in terms of hype and profit, that it is difficult to top. I think Nolan did a great job of ending his trilogy and providing plenty of nods to the fans. ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ is definitely the movie event of the summer.

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You have stumbled upon my pop culture-y themed blog. Here I will try to put together my thoughts on various aspects of pop culture - television, movies, and music. Hopefully, you like it! Well, actually, if you hate it, that's fine too.
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